All of the erasers on my children’s pencils are almost 100% used.

I guess that makes them good students; willing to swing for the fences and try, then fixing their mistakes.

✏️

Rising Tether Loans Add Risk to Stablecoin, Crypto World - WSJ

Tether has also left it unclear whether any of its loans are to related parties, which can be a red flag for investors. Tether’s reports used to say that none of the loans were to affiliated entities. However, it dropped that language starting with its report for the second quarter of 2022. Ms. Welch wouldn’t say why Tether dropped the language and declined to say how much, if any, of Tether’s loans were to related parties as of Sept. 30.

This whole article is like this. Murkiness, lack of routine disclosure, smoke and mirrors.

After FTX, I’m astonished that people are still dealing with crypto exchanges. But hey, everyone wants to get rich quick.

Tweetbot Maker Tapbots Working on ‘Ivory’ Mastodon App - MacRumors

Ivory has a design that is quite similar to Tweetbot at the current time, offering access to a timeline, @ mentions, search, profile, and other options.

These guys are really great at making apps, but their development process is glacial and their business planning is almost non-existent.

They got burned on App.net, so they decided to go all in on Twitter. Then Twitter went to war on third-party apps and they just… stayed?

Now Twitter is in chaos, so they go with another single-source solution? Why not build their app to interact with many services using open standards? Harder to maintain, but that’s business.

Ten (2022)

Vatican Says China Broke Agreement on Bishops - WSJ

Since 2018, neither Beijing nor the Vatican has ordained bishops without the consent of the other side. Only six bishops have been ordained in the same period, while some 40 dioceses in China still have no bishop.

Job well done.

Shock of color.

Vatican Tells Catholics How to Make ‘Faith-Consistent’ Investments - WSJ

They call for “proactive positive investing” in industries such as renewable energy and microfinance.

These guidelines are a paradox.

Don’t invest in fossil fuels, which has lifted billions out of poverty and delivered mobility, economic stability, and food security.

Invest in wildly speculative renewable energy and driving the poor into perpetual debt through micro finance.

Other industries on the blacklist include makers of armaments

Because Catholic moral theology doesn’t permit for a right to national sovereignty and self-defense?

FAA: Pilots should be capable of flying aircraft manually when needed

“Multiple crashes have shown a need for pilots, who might switch on autopilot soon after takeoff, to sharpen their abilities to fly without automation in case they have to take over during an emergency,” the FAA said in the advisory.

Good tip.

Backers of Farmworker Visa Overhaul Make Year-End Push for Immigrant Labor Deal - WSJ

A bill providing a path to citizenship for about one million farmworkers—and creating a capped number of new year-round visas—passed the House in March 2021, with the support of 217 Democrats and 30 Republicans.

Why stuff through in the lame duck session? You’ll never have a political monopoly, so negotiate and figure it out!

Internet down at the office, so impromptu work/school session at the local coffee shop.

Ukrainian Hospital Stymied Russians With Defiant Doctors and a Fake Covid Outbreak - WSJ

By August, Russian soldiers were showing up at hospitals in droves, complaining of headaches or back pain in hopes they’d get sent home. “One guy said he had problems with his knees,” said Andriy Koksharov, head of Tropinka’s trauma department. A scan showed there wasn’t much wrong, but the soldier asked Dr. Koksharov to exaggerate. Dr. Koksharov wrote that he had arthritis and needed to leave the front. “The fewer of them the better,” he said.

Thanksgiving table.

Gentle music in the background, heavy rain in the vicinity, working away on my websites at my desk.

This is true relaxation!

I’ve got that very deep feeling of rest and relaxation that comes with the end-of-year holidays.

Happy Thanksgiving!

🦃